George Labram
| George Frederick Labram | |
|---|---|
-001.jpg) Labram leaning on Long Cecil |
|
| Born | 1859 Detroit, United States of America |
| Died | 1900-02-09 Grand Hotel, Kimberley, Cape Colony |
| Cause of death | Shrapnel from artillery shell |
| Resting place | Gladstone cemetery, Kimberley[1] |
| Nationality | United States of America |
| Occupation | Engineer |
| Employer | De Beers |
| Known for | Construction of Long Cecil gun during the Siege of Kimberley Invention of new diamond mining techniques |
George Labram was an American engineer employed as Chief Mechanical Engineer at the De Beers diamond mines in Kimberley during the Siege of Kimberley.
Contents |
[edit] Early career
Prior to the onset of the Second Boer War, Detroit-born Labram was employed by the De Beers company in Kimberley, first as manager of the crushing plant and then as chief engineer. Under Labram's supervision as manager of the crushing plant, Fred Kirsten devised an automated diamond extraction process. Up to that time all diamonds were manually extracted by sight.[2]
[edit] Second Boer War
Labram assisted Major General Robert George Kekewich in preparing Kimberley's defenses prior to the siege; including the construction of a 155-foot (47 m) watch tower, search lights and a telephone system.[3][4]
Labram installed an emergency fresh-water supply system for the town and designed a bulk refrigeration plant for perishable foodstuffs,[5] specifically for the storage of meat from cattle that had to be slaughtered as they could no longer be let out for grazing.[4]
During the siege Labram also built two armoured trains,[6] manufactured munitions for the existing artillery available in the town, as well as a complete once-off gun affectionately named the Long Cecil after the chairman of De Beers, Cecil Rhodes.[7] Many of the tools needed for the manufacture of the gun had to also be manufactured in the De Beers workshop.[8]
Long Cecil was rifled with a bore of 4.1 inches (100 mm) capable of propelling a 28.5 pounds (12.9 kg) shell over 6,500 yards (5,900 m).[9]
Labram was killed on 9 February 1900, less than a week before the siege was lifted, by a Boer shell that hit his room in the Grand Hotel on Market Square.[10][7] Kekewich gave Labram a full military funeral, that was attended by thousands despite Boer shelling specifically targeting the procession.[11]
De Beers provided well for Labram's widow and son after his death, with Mrs. Labram receiving $500 per year for the remainder of her life and their 13 year old son $1000 per year until he came of age.[12] Great Britain also granted Mrs. Labram a once-off sum of 1000 pounds for the services her husband rendered during the siege.[13]
The importance of the role Labram played in the defence of Kimberley is probably best expressed in a letter from Lieutenant-Colonel Robert George Kekewich to Mrs. Labram:[14]
Dear Madam: It was with great grief that I received the sad intelligence on February 9 that your husband, Mr. George Labram, has been killed by a Boer shell. I write to offer you and your son the deepest sympathy of my staff and myself in the severe loss you have sustained. Not only Kimberley, but the whole British nation, is to-day indebted to your late husband for the valuable assistance he afforded to the defenders of Kimberley during a siege extending nearly four months. Your late husband placed unreservedly at my disposal his great genius, and I can not sufficiently express my gratitude for the many works he completed, which have much assisted me to prolong the defense of Kimberley. I can assure you my dear madam, that the whole of Kimberley mourns the loss of our dear friend George Labram as we would the loss of a dear relative. Yours, sincerely,—KEKEWICH, Lieutenant-Colonel, Commanding the Troops at Kimberley
The one request from the people of Kimberley that Labram was unable to deliver on was to produce some whiskey.[15]
[edit] Legacy
The modern day suburb of Labram in Kimberley is named after George Labram. The Honoured Dead Memorial, which features Long Cecil prominently on its stylobate, is situated adjacent to the neighbourhood.
[edit] Further reading
- Peddle, D.E. (1977-06). "LONG CECIL - The Gun made in Kimberley during the Siege". Military History Journal (The South African Military History Society) 4 (1). ISSN 0026-4016. http://samilitaryhistory.org/vol041dp.html. Retrieved 2009-07-22.
[edit] References
- ^ "Historical Graves in South Africa". Ancestry24. http://www.ancestry24.co.za/Content/WebSite/LearningCentre/Burials.aspx. Retrieved 2009-07-22.[dead link]
- ^ Williams, Gardner Fred (1902). "XIII - Winning the diamonds". The diamond mines of South Africa; some account of their rise and development. Macmillan. pp. 378–380. http://www.archive.org/stream/diamondminesofso00willrich#page/378/mode/1up. Retrieved 2009-07-26.
- ^ James S. Olson ..., eds..; James S. Olson & Robert S. Shadle (1996). Historical Dictionary of the British Empire. Greenwood Press. ISBN 0313293678.
- ^ a b "An American Engineer". May's Landing Record. 1906-09-15. http://www.atlanticlibrary.org/Newspapers/MLRecord/MLR09151906.pdf. Retrieved 2009-07-21.
- ^ Peddle, D.E. (1877-06-01). "LONG CECIL The Gun made in Kimberley during the Siege". Military History Journal (The South African Military History Society) 4 (1). ISSN 0026-4016. http://samilitaryhistory.org/vol041dp.html. Retrieved 2009-07-21.
- ^ Cassell's History of the Boer War, 1899-1902 by Richard Danes (1903), p. 438 (n454) at the Internet Archive
- ^ a b Snow, Richard F.. "GEORGE LABRAM". American Heritage Magazine. http://www.americanheritage.com/articles/magazine/ah/1981/3/1981_3_48.shtml. Retrieved 2009-07-20.
- ^ Besieged by the Boers; a diary of life and events in Kimberley during the siege, Ashe, E. Oliver, (Evelyn Oliver), 1900, p. 112 at the Internet Archive
- ^ Ashe, E. Oliver (1900). Besieged by the Boers; a diary of life and events in Kimberley during the siege (1900). New York: Doubleday, Page & Co.. p. 113. http://www.archive.org/details/besiegedbyboers00ashegoog.
- ^ Besieged by the Boers; a diary of life and events in Kimberley during the siege, Ashe, E. Oliver, (Evelyn Oliver), 1900, p. 134 at the Internet Archive
- ^ Besieged by the Boers; a diary of life and events in Kimberley during the siege, Ashe, E. Oliver, (Evelyn Oliver), 1900, p. 199 at the Internet Archive
- ^ "De Beers Co. Pensions Mrs. Labram". The New York Times. 1901-03-04. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9D00EFDE103DEE32A25757C0A9659C946097D6CF. Retrieved 2009-07-21.
- ^ "The Marquis of Lansdowne to Mr. Choate - Foreign Office, December 13, 1900". http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/FRUS/FRUS-idx?type=turn&entity=FRUS.FRUS1900.p0723&id=FRUS.FRUS1900&isize=M. Retrieved 2009-07-21.
- ^ "Lieutenant-Colonel Kekewitch to Mrs. Labram". 1900-02-12. http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/FRUS/FRUS-idx?type=turn&entity=FRUS.FRUS1900.p0722&id=FRUS.FRUS1900&isize=M&q1=labram. Retrieved 2009-07-21.
- ^ FARWELL, BYRON. "Taking Sides in the Boer War". American Heritage Magazine. http://www.americanheritage.com/articles/magazine/ah/1976/3/1976_3_20.shtml. Retrieved 2009-07-21.
